58680 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 189 / Tuesday, September 30, 2014 / Rules and Regulations 

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 

Office of the Secretary 

32 CFR Part 199 

[DOD–2011–HA–0136] 

RIN 0720–AB56 

Civilian Health and Medical Program of 

the Uniformed Services (CHAMPUS); 

TRICARE Uniform Health Maintenance 

Organization (HMO) Benefit—Prime 

Enrollment Fee Exemption for 

Survivors of Active Duty Deceased 

Sponsors and Medically Retired 

Uniformed Services Members and 

Their Dependents 

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, DoD. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: This final rule creates an 

exception to the usual rule that 

TRICARE Prime enrollment fees are 

uniform for all retirees and their 

dependents and responds to public 

comments received to the proposed rule 

published in the Federal Register on 

June 7, 2013. Survivors of Active Duty 

Deceased Sponsors and Medically 

Retired Uniformed Services Members 

and their Dependents are part of the 

retiree group under TRICARE rules. In 

acknowledgment and appreciation of 

the sacrifices of these two beneficiary 

categories, the Secretary of Defense has 

elected to exercise his authority under 

the United States Code to exempt Active 

Duty Deceased Sponsors and Medically 

Retired Uniformed Services Members 

and their Dependents enrolled in 

TRICARE Prime from paying future 

increases to the TRICARE Prime annual 

enrollment fees. The Prime beneficiaries 

in these categories have made 

significant sacrifices for our country and 

are entitled to special recognition and 

benefits for their sacrifices. Therefore, 

the beneficiaries in these two TRICARE 

beneficiary categories who enrolled in 

TRICARE Prime prior to 10/1/2013, and 

those since that date, will have their 

annual enrollment fee frozen at the 

appropriate fiscal year rate: FY2011 rate 

$230 per single or $460 per family, 

FY2012 rate $260 or $520, FY2013 rate 

$269.38 or $538.56, or the FY2014 rate 

$273.84 or $547.68. The future 

beneficiaries added to these categories 

will have their fee frozen at the rate in 

effect at the time they are classified in 

either category and enroll in TRICARE 

Prime or, if not enrolling, at the rate in 

effect at the time of enrollment. The fee 

remains frozen as long as at least one 

family member remains enrolled in 

TRICARE Prime and there is not a break 

in enrollment. The fee charged for the 

dependent(s) of a Medically Retired 

Uniformed Services Member would not 

change if the dependent(s) was later reclassified a Survivor. 

DATES: This rule is effective October 30, 

2014. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Ralph (Doug) McBroom, (703) 681– 

0039, Defense Health Agency, TRICARE 

Policy and Benefits Office. Questions 

regarding payment of specific claims 

under the TRICARE allowable charge 

method should be addressed to the 

appropriate TRICARE contractor. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Introduction and Background 

A. Overview 

Title 10 Section 1097(e) of the United 

States Code says in part, ‘‘The Secretary 

of Defense may prescribe by regulation 

a premium, deductible, copayment, or 

other charge for health care provided by 

this section.’’ This statute was 

implemented in Title 32 Code of Federal 

Regulations section 199.18(c), (32 CFR 

199.18(c)), which notes that the 

enrollment fees shall be published 

annually and, as applicable, uniformly 

applied to TRICARE beneficiaries. There 

is no enrollment fee for active duty 

dependents. The annual enrollment fee 

for retirees and their dependents since 

the program began was $230 per person 

or $460 per family until FY 2012. In FY 

2012, the Department of Defense 

implemented a modest increase ($2.50 

per person or $5.00 per family per 

month) in the enrollment fees for 

retirees and their dependents to $260 

per person or $520 per family, followed 

by annual indexing. For FY 2013, the 

fee was increased per the National 

Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for 

FY 2012 using the same Cost of Living 

Adjustment (COLA) percentage (3.6%) 

used to increase military retired pay. 

The fee was adjusted again in FY2014 

and FY2015 using the COLA percentage 

for those respective fiscal years. Future 

increases will be calculated per the 

NDAA for FY 2012. 

Although the increases have been 

modest, the Secretary of Defense will 

exempt from future enrollment fee 

increases the Survivors of Active Duty 

Deceased Sponsors and Medically 

Retired Uniformed Services Members 

and their Dependents enrolled in 

TRICARE Prime. (These two beneficiary 

categories are part of the retiree group 

under TRICARE rules.) The enrollment 

fees for the currently enrolled 

beneficiaries in these categories will 

remain at their current rate. The future 

beneficiaries added to these categories 

will have their fee frozen at the rate in 

effect at the time they are classified in 

either category and enroll in TRICARE 

Prime or, if not enrolling, at the rate in 

effect at the time of enrollment. The fee 

remains frozen as long as at least one 

family member remains enrolled in 

TRICARE Prime and there is not a break 

in enrollment. This rule creates an 

exception to the ‘‘uniform rate for all 

retirees’’ general rule and is being made 

to acknowledge, and in appreciation of, 

the sacrifices made by these unique 

members of the retiree population of 

TRICARE beneficiaries. This final rule 

articulates and implements that change. 

It provides that as an exception to the 

requirement for uniformity within the 

group of retirees and their dependents, 

the Secretary of Defense may exempt 

Active Duty Deceased Sponsors and 

Medically Retired Uniformed Services 

Members and their Dependents from 

paying future increase in enrollment 

fees that occur on or after the effective 

date of this final rule. 

The exemption will apply only to the 

beneficiaries in the two categories 

specified above and only if they enroll 

in TRICARE Prime. If a beneficiary in 

one of the categories does not enroll in 

TRICARE Prime, but later elects to 

enroll, their rate will be frozen at the 

rate in effect at the time of enrollment. 

If a beneficiary dis-enrolls from 

TRICARE Prime and later re-enrolls, 

their rate will be frozen at the rate in 

effect at re-enrollment. The fee charged 

for a dependent of a Medically Retired 

Uniformed Services Member will not 

change if the dependent was later reclassified a Survivor and remained 

enrolled in Prime. 

B. Public Comments 

We received two online comments. 

Both supported the rule change to allow 

Survivors of Active Duty Deceased 

Sponsors and Medically Retired 

Uniformed Services Members and their 

Dependents, who are enrolled in Prime, 

to be exempt from future increases in 

TRICARE Prime enrollment fees. 

Regulatory Procedures 

Executive Order 12866 requires 

certain regulatory assessments for any 

significant regulatory action that would 

result in an annual effect on the 

economy of $100 million or more, or 

have other substantial impacts. The 

Congressional Review Act establishes 

certain procedures for major rules, 

defined as those with similar major 

impacts. The Regulatory Flexibility Act 

(RFA) requires that each Federal agency 

prepare, and make available for public 

comment, a regulatory flexibility 

analysis when the agency issues a 

regulation that would have significant 

impact on a substantial number of small 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 189 / Tuesday, September 30, 2014 / Rules and Regulations 58681 

entities. This final rule will have none 

of those effects. Nor does it establish 

information collection requirements 

under the Paperwork Reduction Act. 

Nor for purposes of Executive Order 

13132, does it have federalism 

implications affecting States. 

List of Subjects in 32 CFR Part 199 

Claims, Handicapped, Health 

insurance, and Military personnel. 

Accordingly, 32 CFR part 199 is 

amended as follows: 

PART 199—[AMENDED] 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 199 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 301; 10 U.S.C. chapter 

55. 

■ 2. Section 199.18 is amended by 

adding at the end of paragraph (c)(1) a 

new sentence to read as follows: 

§ 199.18 Uniform HMO Benefit. 

* * * * * 

(c) Enrollment fee under the uniform 

HMO benefit. (1) * * * As an exception 

to the requirement for uniformity within 

the group of retirees and their 

dependents, the Assistant Secretary of 

Defense (Health Affairs) may exempt 

Survivors of Active Duty Deceased 

Sponsors and Medically Retired 

Uniformed Services Members and their 

Dependents from future increases in 

enrollment fees. 

* * * * * 

Dated: September 24, 2014. 

Aaron Siegel, 

Alternate OSD Federal Register Liaison 

Officer, Department of Defense. 

[FR Doc. 2014–23065 Filed 9–29–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 5001–06–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND 

SECURITY 

Coast Guard 

33 CFR Part 80 

[Docket No. USCG–2014–0410] 

RIN 1625–AC13 

Navigation and Navigable Waters; 

Technical, Organizational, and 

Conforming Amendments 

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS. 

ACTION: Correcting amendment. 

SUMMARY: The Coast Guard published a 

final rule in the Federal Register on July 

7, 2014, making non-substantive 

corrections throughout Title 33 of the 

Code of Federal Regulations. In that 

final rule, the Coast Guard revised a 

paragraph because it duplicated the 

substance of another paragraph within 

the same section of an existing 

regulation. In correcting that error, the 

Coast Guard inadvertently removed four 

paragraphs from its regulations. This 

correction resolves that error by 

replacing the four paragraphs that we 

inadvertently removed. 

DATES: This correction is effective on 

September 30, 2014. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If 

you have questions on this final rule, 

call or email Paul Crissy, Office of 

Standards Evaluation and Development, 

Coast Guard; telephone 202–372–1093, 

email Paul.H.Crissy@uscg.mil. If you 

have questions on viewing material on 

the docket, call Cheryl Collins, Program 

Manager, Docket Operations, telephone 

202–366–9826. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: To view 

the original final rule document, visit 

https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/

2014/07/07/2014-14897/navigation-andnavigable-waters-technicalorganizational-and-conformingamendments?utm_

campaign=subscription+

mailing+list&utm_medium=email&utm_

source=federalregister.gov. 

Background 

On July 7, 2014, the Coast Guard 

published its annual technical 

amendment to make non-substantive 

changes to Title 33 of the Code of 

Federal Regulations. 79 FR 38422. 

Need for Correction 

The Coast Guard published a final 

rule in the Federal Register that created 

the need for this correction. In that final 

rule, the Coast Guard revised 33 CFR 

80.712 because paragraphs (a) and (b) 

described the same demarcation line for 

Stono Inlet. The Coast Guard corrected 

§ 80.712 by redesignating paragraph (a) 

as paragraph (b), and revising paragraph 

(a) to reflect the latitude and longitude 

coordinates for the demarcation line 

across Lighthouse Inlet. Our amendatory 

instruction, however, resulted in the 

inadvertent removal of paragraphs (c) 

through (f) in § 80.712. This correction 

restores the original paragraphs (c) 

through (f) in § 80.712. 

List of Subjects in 33 CFR Part 80 

Navigation (water), Treaties, 

Waterways. 

Accordingly, 33 CFR part 80 is 

amended by making the following 

correcting amendment: 

PART 80—COLREGS DEMARCATION 

LINES 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 80 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 14 U.S.C. 2; 14 U.S.C. 633; 33 

U.S.C. 151(a). 

■ 2. Revise § 80.712 to read as follows: 

§ 80.712 Morris Island, SC to Hilton Head 

Island, SC. 

(a) A line drawn from the easternmost 

tip of Folly Island to 32°41′37′′ N., 

079°53′03′′ W. (abandoned lighthouse 

tower) on the northside of Lighthouse 

Inlet; thence west to the shoreline of 

Morris Island. 

(b) A line drawn from the seaward 

tangent of Folly Island across Stono 

River to the shoreline of Sandy Point. 

(c) A line drawn from the 

southernmost extremity of Seabrook 

Island 257° true across the North Edisto 

River Entrance to the shore of Botany 

Bay Island. 

(d) A line drawn from the microwave 

antenna tower on Edisto Beach charted 

in approximate position latitude 

32°28.3′ N. longitude 80°19.2′ W. across 

St. Helena Sound to the abandoned 

lighthouse tower on Hunting Island. 

(e) A line formed by the centerline of 

the highway bridge between Hunting 

Island and Fripp Island. 

(f) A line drawn from the westernmost 

extremity of Bull Point on Capers Island 

to Port Royal Sound Channel Range 

Rear Light, latitude 32°13.7′ N., 

longitude 80°36.0′ W.; thence 259° true 

to the easternmost extremity of Hilton 

Head at latitude 32°13.0′ N., longitude 

80°40.1′ W. 

Dated: September 23, 2014, 

Katia Cervoni, 

Chief, Office of Regulations and 

Administrative Law, U.S. Coast Guard. 

[FR Doc. 2014–23251 Filed 9–29–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 9110–04–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND 

SECURITY 

Coast Guard 

33 CFR Part 117 

[Docket No. USCG–2014–0845] 

Drawbridge Operation Regulation; 

Trent River, New Bern, NC 

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS. 

ACTION: Notice of deviation from 

drawbridge regulation. 

SUMMARY: The Coast Guard has issued a 

temporary deviation from the operating 

schedule that governs the US 70/Alfred 


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